Brighton's naked bike ride branded "indecent” by council (From The Argus)
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Brighton's naked bike ride branded "indecent” by council
9:30am Tuesday 25th May 2010 in
A naked bike ride has been branded “indecent” and “sleazy” by city leaders who want it scrapped.
Nearly a thousand people are planning to pedal through Brighton and Hove as “bare as you dare” to raise awareness of the vulnerability of cyclists.
It would be the fifth time the June 13 event, which is fast becoming a firm favourite in the city’s calendar, has taken place.
But council leader Councillor Mary Mears has written to Chief Superintendent Graham Bartlett, city commander for Brighton and Hove, to formally register the council’s opposition to the naked bike ride.
In a letter seen by The Argus, Coun Mears said: “I find it very hard to accept the interpretation that riding through the city naked is not technically a breach of the indecency laws.
“This is an event that will be seen wittingly or unwittingly by large numbers of our residents and visitors, many of whom will be young children.
“At the very least, this event will lower the tone of the city and at worst, will cause great offence and damage our reputation with visitors.”
The proposed ride, which has been approved by Sussex Police, has also been criticised by several Conservative councillors including Dawn Barnett, David Smart and Trevor Alford.
Nick Sayers, one of the organisers of the event, which asks riders to dress as “bare as they dare” said 800 people had already signed up on Facebook.
He said: “The bike ride has a reputation as a fun, family-friendly, carnival experience.
“The serious point we are making is how vulnerable cyclists are.
“What is really indecent are the levels of pollution in the city and the number of life endangering vehicles there are on our roads.
“The whole protect the children excuse just seems to me a way for these prudes to project their body issues on to somebody else.”
Chief Inspector Simon Nelson said they had seen few complaints or associated crime in previous years.
He said: “It is not being naked that would be an offence, it is more about the behaviour of the person that is associated with that and whether someone was being intentionally indecent.
“This is the fifth year of the event and you have to bear in mind that this is a public demonstration and so they have a right to hold it as long as it is conducted in a peaceful manner.
Comments(120)
Whitedot
says...
10:00am Tue 25 May 10
Andy R
says...
10:03am Tue 25 May 10
shrek's uglier brother
says...
10:04am Tue 25 May 10
kkj
says...
10:14am Tue 25 May 10
Christophe Hawtree
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10:23am Tue 25 May 10
lorrie2
says...
10:25am Tue 25 May 10
kkj wrote:Tottaly agree, not everyone wants to see fat overweight men walking round in a thong at the pride event each year, ( some could find this offensive) but the council are up for it as it makes them revenue, the only difference with the knaked bikeride is that the council isnt making any dosh out of it!
Couldn't these concerns also apply to Pride, which the council has seen fit to support with a loan?
securith word
/ deny-form
Dan Gleballs
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10:33am Tue 25 May 10
Metro Reader
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10:38am Tue 25 May 10
Bennn
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10:46am Tue 25 May 10
AngieRS
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10:49am Tue 25 May 10
Andre Spooner
says...
10:52am Tue 25 May 10
PS. I would like to point out that me and my Mighty Horse have no current intention to breed.
andygunner
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11:01am Tue 25 May 10
Colin Houlson
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11:02am Tue 25 May 10
Christophe Hawtree wrote:You do know you said that out loud?
Perhaps Mary Mears could take part in the Ride with some strategically placed items from her greengrocery stall?
Colin Houlson
says...
11:03am Tue 25 May 10
Dan Gleballs wrote:Does that explain the 'Massive'?
Id rather see the naked bike ride then seeing two grown men give each other sexual favours in the bushes during Pride.
DougM
says...
11:14am Tue 25 May 10
andygunner wrote:I would have zero problem with taking my children to a nudist beach, likewise them seeing nudity in a film - both these activities do not necessarily involve sexual activity that I actually would not want my children exposed to at an early age.
I just think people and particularly parents/children should be able to make a choice about what they are exposed to. Would you take your children down to the nudist beach for the day because its 'natural'? Do you let them watch films or tv programmes where nudity occurs?
Nudity and sex are two different things.
People who cannot dissociate sex and nudity are the ones with the problem.
She-Ra, Princess Of Power
says...
11:22am Tue 25 May 10
There's clearly a demand for it, else it wouldn't be popular enough to have got to it's 5th year!
I personally don't have a problem with it and if I had kids I wouldn't mind if they saw it - as above it's the distinction between nudity and sex. Perhaps people wouldn't grow up to be such prudes if they were exposed to a little more open mindedness!
It's just a load of people without clothes on for a demo, don't really see the big deal personally.
lornadoon
says...
11:27am Tue 25 May 10
Last year I watched this event with my little girl who was then 3 years of age. We thought that it was great fun.
The only comments she made were 'look at that mans pink hair' or ' look at all of those beautiful flowers' as a lot of the participants had strategicaly placed flowers.
I never want her to think that peoples bodies are indecent.
In fact we may go again this year, it is FUN.
Andy R
says...
11:40am Tue 25 May 10
....other than the massive cuts in local services which THEIR government is about to unleash on us.
JRH
says...
11:50am Tue 25 May 10
Mary! Mary! Mary!
OUT! OUT! OUT!
rusky
says...
12:17pm Tue 25 May 10
Metro Reader wrote:You forgot the overpriced car parking too!
“At the very least, this event will lower the tone of the city and at worst, will cause great offence and damage our reputation with visitors.” - OH PLEASE, the tone is lowered by the tramps sleeping in door ways, the street drinking, the open drug taking, the rubish all over the place. Get real woman, the naked body should be embraced.
I have no problems with my kids seeing the human body.
thelastword
says...
12:23pm Tue 25 May 10
hee hee
mockduck
says...
12:28pm Tue 25 May 10
Dan Gleballs wrote:Why do we have to choose? I want to see both!
Id rather see the naked bike ride then seeing two grown men give each other sexual favours in the bushes during Pride.
davyboy
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12:32pm Tue 25 May 10
bug eye
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12:55pm Tue 25 May 10
gmgc81
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1:04pm Tue 25 May 10
Brighton is a great city and it's events like this that show the city as the cosmopolitan place as it is. As a proud Brightonian I'm proud to know that I come from a charismatic city, unlike your typical concrete town. It's a shame that the dull patrol of Mary Mears and her cronies have to whine like this. Besides, her boss Mr Cameron's gonna try to spoil the party sooner rather than later anyway!
Masterchav
says...
1:16pm Tue 25 May 10
Andy R wrote:And why are there going to be "massive cuts"?
As far as I can see, "The Council" has taken no view on this. It's a few Tory councillors wanting to focus on anything....ANYTHING ....other than the massive cuts in local services which THEIR government is about to unleash on us.
Oh yes, because your hero Gordon Brown overspent MASSIVELY and left the country on the brink of bankruptcy! That's why!
Peteinblack
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1:26pm Tue 25 May 10
s who tut-tut at anyone having a better time than them, or who don't suffer from their provincial prudery.
The Tories have recently been banging on about 'localism' and community power, getting government off people's backs, and freeing us from the idiocy of the nanny state, yet the Tories are invariably the first to try to ban things that they don't approve of.
Bet they'd be happy to let a young child watch a fox hunt , though, and even be 'blooded', on the grounds that this was 'natural'. But a nude bike ride? Gosh, no; how 'indecent' and 'depraved'!
Andy R
says...
1:28pm Tue 25 May 10
Masterchav wrote:"My hero"? What are you on about?
Andy R wrote: As far as I can see, "The Council" has taken no view on this. It's a few Tory councillors wanting to focus on anything....ANYTHING ....other than the massive cuts in local services which THEIR government is about to unleash on us.And why are there going to be "massive cuts"? Oh yes, because your hero Gordon Brown overspent MASSIVELY and left the country on the brink of bankruptcy! That's why!
Mind you, as far as I know, Gordon Brown didn't run any banks.....
Peteinblack
says...
1:48pm Tue 25 May 10
Masterchav wrote:The whole of Western Europe and the United States are in a similar economic situation, and being obliged to cut public expenditure, so how is this all Gordon Brown's fault Is Greece the fault of Gordon Brown, too?!
Andy R wrote: As far as I can see, "The Council" has taken no view on this. It's a few Tory councillors wanting to focus on anything....ANYTHING ....other than the massive cuts in local services which THEIR government is about to unleash on us.And why are there going to be "massive cuts"? Oh yes, because your hero Gordon Brown overspent MASSIVELY and left the country on the brink of bankruptcy! That's why!
The public deficit would be a **** sight less if we hadn't bailed out the banks, and rescued them from their own recklessness, but hey, let's cut the NHS, social services and police officers instead to recoup the money.
The origins of this economic crisis are in the international banking system, and the power which high finance has acquired over the last 30 years due to uncontrolled free markets, globalisation and deregulation, with Conservatives AND New Labour in thrall to 'the City', and giving in to their repeated demands for 'light touch regulation', and no curbs on their reckless activities.
This crash would have ocurred under any government (it's happened in Europe under Conservative governments too), because none of our political leaders has had the guts to tackle the money men; even now, the overpaid bankers are demanding to be left alone, and continuing to pay themsleves ridiculous salaries and bonuses, while insisting that the rest of us 'tighten our belts', and make sacrifices in order to reassure the money markets. What a **** cheek!
Gordon Brown was generally useless, but to claim that our current economic problems are all down to him suggests either ignorance of the deeper causes of the recession, or is simply Tory propaganda to divert attention from the role played by their chums in 'the City' (who fund the Tories just as the trade unions finance Labour).
What a bunch of merchant bankers,
the lot of them.
rosiedoes
says...
1:49pm Tue 25 May 10
I have no intention of taking part in the naked bike ride, but I fully support its right to take place.
Those lowering the tone are Conservative prudes like our friend Mary, who do not speak for the vast majority of Brightonians at all and seem to want to stifle the true spirit of freedom we are supposed to enjoy, here in Brighton.
Give people a bit or warning and if they don't like it, they can stay home for the morning - it's not a difficult decision to make.
It's so embarrassing that this woman and her cohorts are representing this wonderful city.
Colin Houlson
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1:52pm Tue 25 May 10
freewheelingdom
says...
1:54pm Tue 25 May 10
Colin Houlson
says...
2:13pm Tue 25 May 10
freewheelingdom wrote:Just 17,000 people in the entire Brighton & Hove area in a turnout of only 38.8 per cent. So hardly anyone apart from the sorts outlined in Peteinblacks posts. Brighton & Hove also has the highest percentage of citizens in the UK indicating their religion as Jedi. Scary.
Who are these tory tw@ts and, did anyone really vote for them? They've definately not got any idea on the real problems in this world. Why make naked bike riders an issue? If you're offended, you just don't look.
Fight Back
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2:18pm Tue 25 May 10
Alison Smith
says...
2:23pm Tue 25 May 10
Its too dangerous for their officers to move travellers on; they won't break up an illegal rave in Ovingdean and won't arrest people for indecent exposure.....but if you drop an apple core in the street you get a £70 instant littering fine. Crazy?
anonymous coward
says...
2:32pm Tue 25 May 10
Next they'll be closing the nudist beach.
Then it'll be doilies covering up table legs...
Gaz the great
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3:30pm Tue 25 May 10
Peteinblack
says...
3:46pm Tue 25 May 10
Gaz the great wrote:If everyone else could see the financial crash coming, how come most other major economies are also suffering, including the world's largest economy (the USA) - which had a neo-conervative government at the time of the crash? This is a world-wide problem, affecting Right-wing as well as Left-wing governments, and is what happens when you let 'the market' get out of control, and banks to acquire too much power and market share.
As for the naked bike ride-who cares! As for our finance problems, this country would have been better placed if Gordon had not borrowed so heavily when the money was rolling in! Just about everybody could see the coming crash in the global ecomony, except our useless goverment:
If you think it all can be blamed on just one political leader, because you don't like them, then you can be sure that it'll happen again, because slashing public expenditure will divert attention away from the problem of casino banking and sub-prime lending.
Already, the new coalition government is toning down the pre-election pledges to reform the banking sector, while rushing ahead to curb the deficit by cutting benefits and services enjoyed by ordinary people. The stripey-shirts and red-braces brigade in the Square Mile must be rubbing their hands with glee. We'll lose our jobs and benefits, and they'll carry on raking in their 6-figure salaries and bonuses.
Makes your heart swell with patriotic pride, does it not?
Masterchav
says...
4:02pm Tue 25 May 10
Andy R wrote:Oh come on, we all know that the root of the problem was in an overpriced housing market in the US, UK, Spain and elsewhere.... funded mainly by debt. Not to mention the CDOs, CDSs, etc.
Masterchav wrote:"My hero"? What are you on about? Mind you, as far as I know, Gordon Brown didn't run any banks.....Andy R wrote: As far as I can see, "The Council" has taken no view on this. It's a few Tory councillors wanting to focus on anything....ANYTHING ....other than the massive cuts in local services which THEIR government is about to unleash on us.And why are there going to be "massive cuts"? Oh yes, because your hero Gordon Brown overspent MASSIVELY and left the country on the brink of bankruptcy! That's why!
Next thing you'll be saying that Brown didn't lose billions selling the UK's gold stocks when they were a fraction of the price they are now!
Tom V
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4:09pm Tue 25 May 10
devilled_advocate
says...
4:31pm Tue 25 May 10
we all have bodies and it is perefctly possible to walk (or ride) around in them with out any sexual intent. If people are so bothered may I politely suggest they avert their gaze?
my 9 year old daughter thinks the whole thing is a hoot!
what a great brighton tradition the naked bike ride is becoming, long may it continue.
TheInsider
says...
4:32pm Tue 25 May 10
However, I am hoping there's some nice young ladies astride a hardtail.
Mary Mears should get out after 9pm on a Saturday and see people having se* on the beach while ****, or look at the young people urinating everywhere on their way homes from clubs.
She needs to get her priorities right.
A load of naked cyclists isn't causing any harm and if you don't like it, look the other way.
I don't like Mick Hucknall, so I don't look at him.
yorkie44
says...
4:45pm Tue 25 May 10
Gaz the great
says...
5:03pm Tue 25 May 10
Peteinblack wrote:We (the goverment) borrowed money during a time of incresing tax revenues & wasted it wholesale. Then the bubble burst in a very big way, tax revenues collapsed & even if Labour had returned to power, the same results would have occurred, i.e tax increase, spending cuts ect. As for the 50% tax imposed on the higher earner, most of us got round it by paying ourselves a large amount of this years wages as a bonus at the end of March, thus avoiding it!
Gaz the great wrote: As for the naked bike ride-who cares! As for our finance problems, this country would have been better placed if Gordon had not borrowed so heavily when the money was rolling in! Just about everybody could see the coming crash in the global ecomony, except our useless goverment:If everyone else could see the financial crash coming, how come most other major economies are also suffering, including the world's largest economy (the USA) - which had a neo-conervative government at the time of the crash? This is a world-wide problem, affecting Right-wing as well as Left-wing governments, and is what happens when you let 'the market' get out of control, and banks to acquire too much power and market share. If you think it all can be blamed on just one political leader, because you don't like them, then you can be sure that it'll happen again, because slashing public expenditure will divert attention away from the problem of casino banking and sub-prime lending. Already, the new coalition government is toning down the pre-election pledges to reform the banking sector, while rushing ahead to curb the deficit by cutting benefits and services enjoyed by ordinary people. The stripey-shirts and red-braces brigade in the Square Mile must be rubbing their hands with glee. We'll lose our jobs and benefits, and they'll carry on raking in their 6-figure salaries and bonuses. Makes your heart swell with patriotic pride, does it not?
thevoiceofreason
says...
6:13pm Tue 25 May 10
Dan Gleballs wrote:Well don't hang around Preston Park on Pride day then, sounds like you're going looking for it.
Id rather see the naked bike ride then seeing two grown men give each other sexual favours in the bushes during Pride.
Acheron
says...
6:28pm Tue 25 May 10
Peteinblack wrote:So I can assume we just turn a blind eye to all the PFI deals that Gordon Brown decided had to be classed as off balance sheet so he could balance the books (and this was before the recession). The amount of debt is far worse that the stats show and a recent treasury worker told thier mum (a collegue of mine) that the country will be in serious debt throughout his lifetime. As far as I'm concerned this fiddle has only been made worse by the media turning a blind eye to it and not challenging the government on it!
Gaz the great wrote:If everyone else could see the financial crash coming, how come most other major economies are also suffering, including the world's largest economy (the USA) - which had a neo-conervative government at the time of the crash? This is a world-wide problem, affecting Right-wing as well as Left-wing governments, and is what happens when you let 'the market' get out of control, and banks to acquire too much power and market share.
As for the naked bike ride-who cares! As for our finance problems, this country would have been better placed if Gordon had not borrowed so heavily when the money was rolling in! Just about everybody could see the coming crash in the global ecomony, except our useless goverment:
If you think it all can be blamed on just one political leader, because you don't like them, then you can be sure that it'll happen again, because slashing public expenditure will divert attention away from the problem of casino banking and sub-prime lending.
Already, the new coalition government is toning down the pre-election pledges to reform the banking sector, while rushing ahead to curb the deficit by cutting benefits and services enjoyed by ordinary people. The stripey-shirts and red-braces brigade in the Square Mile must be rubbing their hands with glee. We'll lose our jobs and benefits, and they'll carry on raking in their 6-figure salaries and bonuses.
Makes your heart swell with patriotic pride, does it not?
Security word (no word of a lie), view-risk
BringBackGoodGrammar
says...
7:39pm Tue 25 May 10
yorkie44 wrote:so that narrow minded tw*ts like you have something to moan about over ur tesco lager
I agree with everything Mary Mears says. This event is supposed to be about oil dependency and car culture. Where does nudity come into this? The naked aspect is entirely to draw attention to the event and to shock. The Chief Inspector is missing the point entirely. We saw on the Brighton Beach TV programme that women were not even allowed to be topless on the beach. We have seen Stephen Gough repeatedly arrested for his nude walks, when it was about the right to be naked and he was avoiding very public places. Why do we allow this revolting behaviour in our city centre?
Kit Napier
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7:44pm Tue 25 May 10
bob123
says...
7:48pm Tue 25 May 10
Far too many larger ladies last year.
caeos
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9:22pm Tue 25 May 10
Tye
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9:48pm Tue 25 May 10
Whitedot wrote:nobody would notice - even if you were in the event ;-)
I'd be worried about getting a semi.
nsayers
says...
10:16pm Tue 25 May 10
I just wanted to clear up a couple of points: (a) A small number of out-of-touch Tory councillors have branded the event as indecent, not the Council at large, and (b) I'm not sure which "indecency laws" are being referred to, but the oft-quoted law against indecent exposure was overturned some years ago.
Andre Spooner
says...
10:23pm Tue 25 May 10
THEN THEY CAME for the state of the British economy, and I did not speak up, for I wasn't an economist.
THEN THEY CAME for the gays, and I did not speak up, for I wasn't a gay.
THEN THEY CAME for my Mighty Horse! And Spooner emerged carrying the Great Flaming Sabre of Destruction and unleashing Great Tins containing Carnation Milk, and rescued the Mighty Horse from beneath their vitriolic talons.
And then, atop the Mighty Horse, with Flaming Lance and Carnation Milk, Spooner wreaked a great vengeance. Faced with the Power of Spooner and the Might of my Mighty Horse, all quailed! All shook with great panic! Bravo! Bravo! Spooner crushed them before him, and the Mighty Horse struck at them with his hooves!
Flee! Flee! Take great strides up Ditchling Road all the way to Hollingbury Hill Fort! Scurry along the Coastway Path in the direction of Rottingdean! Let those who abandon Apple Cores in the the Suburbs be clapped in irons! The last shall be first and the first shall be last! Bravo! Bravo! Bravo! UPON MIGHTY HORSE, Spooner rides again!
nats1976
says...
10:56pm Tue 25 May 10
mickage
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2:04am Wed 26 May 10
Athena
says...
2:12am Wed 26 May 10
How so? Brighton's tone is already about as low it it gets. Brighton was famous for the "dirty weekend". Now it's just trashville, where exhibitionists indulge their own need to "express themselves" in any way they think fit to shock.
AS-Kemptown
says...
9:14am Wed 26 May 10
InsideTheInsider
says...
9:20am Wed 26 May 10
p.s - There is no law against just being naked in public.
Old Ladys Gin
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9:37am Wed 26 May 10
Old Ladys Gin
says...
9:43am Wed 26 May 10
AS-Kemptown wrote:A very good post!
As part of a Queen's Speech that vowed to restore lost freedoms and civil liberties, David Cameron's administration said it would allow "members of the public to protest peacefully without fear of being criminalised". Pehaps Mary Mears should make herself familiar with her own Party's policies before opening her small mind!
KWAK
says...
9:58am Wed 26 May 10
Dr Sphincter
says...
10:41am Wed 26 May 10
kentan
says...
12:27pm Wed 26 May 10
Used only once........
Not to be sniffed at !!!
kungfumonkeyslayer
says...
1:20pm Wed 26 May 10
Brighton's attraction is that it is open to these types of events. If all our councellers are opposed to these sorts of public events then I truely think we have the wrong councellers. Brightons economy is based upon free thinking and embracing things which in other places are frowned upon.
There's been a few comments about Gay Pride, I'm not gay, but think that Gay Pride is a good thing. I have no problems with taking Children along - If Parents dont want their children to see it then i think thats fine, but it shouldn't be something decided by councellers - Its up to the public. You're children wont turn out gay just from seeing a couple of people wearing speedos/dresses and make up!
The Bike ride is supposed to be shocking, thats the point. I think the UK needs to get a more european culture and accept a bit of public nudity its just for 1 day!, no one is asking anyone who doesn't want to be naked to do so, so just avoid those sections of town if you dont want to see it.
Brighton is a great place to live, I've lived here for 30 years, and I hope that it remains a place where groups of people can be passionate about what they believe in and publically demonstrate in an organised official way.
I'm for keeping these types of events.
Rock_UK
says...
1:37pm Wed 26 May 10
mbirdy
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1:51pm Wed 26 May 10
Morrissey
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1:56pm Wed 26 May 10
Mr Lahey
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2:04pm Wed 26 May 10
shrek's uglier brother wrote:You place a great deal of emphasis on other people's 'limited intellect(s)' governing their motives, when perhaps it is your own you should think about improving, given your predisposition for posting meaningless and reactionary comments on pages which only idiots read. (myself included)
Looks like the City Council is doing what they seem to do best: pass the difficult issues on to other agencies (like the police) to sort out whilst cherry-picking those easy decisions that give them political capital. I hold no torch for the naked bike ride, and indeed it seems primarliy to be populated by exhibitionists and those of limited intellect, but the city council, however much it might try to take some sort of self-defined moral high ground, can't just keep passing the buck. There are laws that would allow the council, if it really wants to "put its money where its mouth is" to formally oppose this event, or demonstration, or whatever you want to call it. But that might involve the council being called to account and I really don't think the current administration is intellectually ready for that....
Athena
says...
2:05pm Wed 26 May 10
Morrissey
says...
2:14pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena wrote:I'm sure no one has missed you! Brighton attracts open-minded and cosmopolitan people and I am confident the ride will go ahead.
Europeans don't cycle naked in the streets, as one of the posters implies. Another says it's a fab place to live and they've been here 30 years. I lived there for 40 years and left because it turned into a politically correct dump full of exhibitionists.
Athena
says...
2:23pm Wed 26 May 10
Morrissey wrote:I am open-minded and Cosmopolitan, but to be so, doesn't mean you must condone public nudity where people, children and the elderly and others, could be offended. That so many here think public nudity is normal, shows just how depraved my beloved old city has become and how selfish are many of the outsiders who have come to live in it and claim it as their own.
Athena wrote:I'm sure no one has missed you! Brighton attracts open-minded and cosmopolitan people and I am confident the ride will go ahead.
Europeans don't cycle naked in the streets, as one of the posters implies. Another says it's a fab place to live and they've been here 30 years. I lived there for 40 years and left because it turned into a politically correct dump full of exhibitionists.
Morrissey
says...
2:25pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena
says...
2:30pm Wed 26 May 10
Morrissey wrote:Yes, but not Continentals, as they used to be called.
oh and by the way, we are Europeans.
Morrissey
says...
2:31pm Wed 26 May 10
A town is made up by its people and there views/opinions/lifes
tyles not the age of its architecture.
Old people are often wise and have seen it all before, and children generally just laugh when they see people in the nud!
Spanners
says...
2:45pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena wrote:hilarious use of "cosmopolitan", with a capital C no less, (definition of which is having constituent elements from all over the world or from many different parts of the world) and "outsiders" to describe anyone not born in a medium sized seaside town in England. I applaude this truly astounding level of hypocrisy !
Morrissey wrote:I am open-minded and Cosmopolitan, but to be so, doesn't mean you must condone public nudity where people, children and the elderly and others, could be offended. That so many here think public nudity is normal, shows just how depraved my beloved old city has become and how selfish are many of the outsiders who have come to live in it and claim it as their own.Athena wrote: Europeans don't cycle naked in the streets, as one of the posters implies. Another says it's a fab place to live and they've been here 30 years. I lived there for 40 years and left because it turned into a politically correct dump full of exhibitionists.I'm sure no one has missed you! Brighton attracts open-minded and cosmopolitan people and I am confident the ride will go ahead.
Rock_UK
says...
2:46pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena wrote:Well not all the time of course (too cold!), but almost all european countries have a naked bike ride and make no fuss at all about them. The full list of countries with naked bike rides is:
Europeans don't cycle naked in the streets, as one of the posters implies. Another says it's a fab place to live and they've been here 30 years. I lived there for 40 years and left because it turned into a politically correct dump full of exhibitionists.
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Czech Republic
Denmark
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
Latvia
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Paraguay
Peru
Poland
Russia
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
United Kingdom
United States
kungfumonkeyslayer
says...
2:47pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena wrote:Hi, just wanted to say that if you were referring to my comment about the UK needing to be a bit more liberall about nudity (like europe). I'd like to reply.
Europeans don't cycle naked in the streets, as one of the posters implies. Another says it's a fab place to live and they've been here 30 years. I lived there for 40 years and left because it turned into a politically correct dump full of exhibitionists.
I was mostly referring to the point that us brits tend to keep ourselves covered at all times, even in changing rooms (which is all fair enough - but as a result we (the residents of the UK) have perhaps become quite anti-nude (even in private.) Perhaps if we were all a bit more liberal it might make things a bit more relaxed.
Brighton is a fun place to live, If you take all these sorts of things away its just another dull city by the sea.
The Naked Bike run happens all over the world, its not just a brighton/UK thing.
We all have our opinion and I very much doubt the comments on this site will change anything! But I personally think its dissappointing that our councellors are trying to oppose such things.
I agree with other posts on the amount you'll actually see - Very few people are naked during the WNBR and they're not visible for that long anyway, unless your riding with them or taking photos the most you'll likely see if a blur of anything much!
Athena
says...
3:01pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena
says...
3:05pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena
says...
3:11pm Wed 26 May 10
Spanners wrote:Sorry about the typo capital C for cosmopolitan, which is Greek for citizen of the world. I wasn't born in Brighton myself, but lived there for more than 40 years when it was a classier place than it is now. I've also lived in other countries and have immigrant parents or grandparents. In that respect, I'm cosmopolitan. As to"outsiders", I meant the transient population who live there for a few years while they want the buzz from college, uni or working by the seaside, and then move elsewhere when they want to bring up their children.
Athena wrote:hilarious use of "cosmopolitan", with a capital C no less, (definition of which is having constituent elements from all over the world or from many different parts of the world) and "outsiders" to describe anyone not born in a medium sized seaside town in England. I applaude this truly astounding level of hypocrisy !
Morrissey wrote:I am open-minded and Cosmopolitan, but to be so, doesn't mean you must condone public nudity where people, children and the elderly and others, could be offended. That so many here think public nudity is normal, shows just how depraved my beloved old city has become and how selfish are many of the outsiders who have come to live in it and claim it as their own.Athena wrote: Europeans don't cycle naked in the streets, as one of the posters implies. Another says it's a fab place to live and they've been here 30 years. I lived there for 40 years and left because it turned into a politically correct dump full of exhibitionists.I'm sure no one has missed you! Brighton attracts open-minded and cosmopolitan people and I am confident the ride will go ahead.
Rock_UK
says...
3:17pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena wrote:Athena, I think you're missing the point a little. The point is that it is no more or less exciting than any other kind of cycling. I gave the list to give an idea as to how completely unremarkable the whole naked bike ride thing is. Obviously I failed.
Thank you for the list of naked bike-riding countries. I had no idea such stuff was so popular. As our great-grandmothers used to say: "I don't know WHAT the world is coming to"! (I would ask, though, is everyone THAT bored that they find this kind of stuff that exciting?)
Athena
says...
3:18pm Wed 26 May 10
mikebaden
says...
3:19pm Wed 26 May 10
I think most of you people above are a bunch of fruitloops, you really haven't got anything better to do then get all angry and excited about a flipping bike ride?
There's a reason Brighton has a reputation for being a lazy city, because of frivolous nonsense like this.
And no I won't be commenting further - unlike it seems some of you - I've got work to do and constructive things to be doing.
Athena
says...
3:24pm Wed 26 May 10
mikebaden wrote:Are you at work, Mike? I don't see what these comments have to do with the economy, quite frankly.
Perhaps if people spent more time going to work, and less time bashing each other on the internet like on here, the economy wouldn't be so bad.
I think most of you people above are a bunch of fruitloops, you really haven't got anything better to do then get all angry and excited about a flipping bike ride?
There's a reason Brighton has a reputation for being a lazy city, because of frivolous nonsense like this.
And no I won't be commenting further - unlike it seems some of you - I've got work to do and constructive things to be doing.
mikebaden
says...
3:33pm Wed 26 May 10
Athena
says...
3:36pm Wed 26 May 10
mikebaden wrote:Perhaps others are here are working different shifts, or they are retired or on holiday? :-)
No, I work nightshifts. This is my free time ;)
mikebaden
says...
3:41pm Wed 26 May 10
RickH
says...
4:19pm Wed 26 May 10
Spanners wrote:Open-minded and a 'magazine' - fantastic pun but bet wasn't intended :)
Athena wrote:hilarious use of "cosmopolitan", with a capital C no less, (definition of which is having constituent elements from all over the world or from many different parts of the world) and "outsiders" to describe anyone not born in a medium sized seaside town in England. I applaude this truly astounding level of hypocrisy !Morrissey wrote:I am open-minded and Cosmopolitan, but to be so, doesn't mean you must condone public nudity where people, children and the elderly and others, could be offended. That so many here think public nudity is normal, shows just how depraved my beloved old city has become and how selfish are many of the outsiders who have come to live in it and claim it as their own.Athena wrote: Europeans don't cycle naked in the streets, as one of the posters implies. Another says it's a fab place to live and they've been here 30 years. I lived there for 40 years and left because it turned into a politically correct dump full of exhibitionists.I'm sure no one has missed you! Brighton attracts open-minded and cosmopolitan people and I am confident the ride will go ahead.
Security word = page-burn - its gets better!
Morrissey
says...
4:36pm Wed 26 May 10
Dicky71
says...
4:40pm Wed 26 May 10
Dr Sphincter
says...
4:52pm Wed 26 May 10
washpot
says...
9:00pm Wed 26 May 10
DUH !!! How? take a tour round the country, or even around the rest of Sussex, then you may get a clearer picture of what people really think about the 'city by the sea'. if it's reputation got any lower it would vanish.
the council rip-off drivers-locals and tourists alike, it's a clubbers paradise with wholesale drug and alcohol abuse 7 days a week, the streets, if you dare walk them after 10'oc are full of rubbish and vomit, the presumption that 'arty ****' culture events give the area any form of meaningful status is both pathetic and self deluding - over the last thirty years the 'city' has been in a steady and constant decline - what more harm can a few more deluded people on bikes do.
southwicker
says...
9:08pm Wed 26 May 10
i think they should be arrested for indecent exposure sicko`s
Brighton Born
says...
9:45pm Wed 26 May 10
How is it that:
1) Her company had managed to win the whole City's school meals contract (C.H. Mears & Sons)?
2) Her families company managed to win the cities housing stock repair contract (Mears Group PLC)?
3) That no link seems to have been made locally in the press to the fact that she is related to Victor & Henry Mears (who organised the 1 million pound theft infamous lapland fiasco and who have previously served 5 years for a half million pound tax evasion)?
4) That her cover up of a whistle-blowers objection to her corruption was never reported outside of Gscene (http://www.gscene.c
om/local/The_letter_
Brighton_Council_doe
s_not_want_you_to_se
e.shtml)?
stan bailey
says...
10:03pm Wed 26 May 10
washpot
says...
10:09pm Wed 26 May 10
would she feel better if they rode their bikes with chrissy trees on their heads and balancing school dinners as well?
suppose if they did that it would really be seen as a sign of brighton culture - then it would be ok
(well it would if the mears family could sell tickets)
dogs-ball
says...
10:12pm Wed 26 May 10
2)Madeira Drive is closed for a Brighton & Hove Bus Rally & Exhibition - so they won't be going that way.
3) If you dont want to see 'privates on parade' - dont look.
4) I'm not taking the family into Brighton anymore in protest of the parking charges!
security code: pair-hair Really!
Andy R
says...
10:50pm Wed 26 May 10
southwicker wrote:You ought to be arrested for that punctuation.
i think its disgusting i dont want my children to watch it and also i dont go to brighton when its gay pride because the dont need to see a bunch of semi naked men with there **** hanging out, its not nice , and no one cares if people are gay or what ever the naked cyclists are saying its just another excuse for the freaks of brighton to bear all, ... i think they should be arrested for indecent exposure sicko`s
Skidbladnir
says...
9:29am Thu 27 May 10
Athena wrote:There are many obscene things in this world, and in Brighton. The human body is not one of them. The degree to which many abuse themselves by binge-drinking on a Saturday night might count and homeless people living on the streets certainly does.
Morrissey wrote:I am open-minded and Cosmopolitan, but to be so, doesn't mean you must condone public nudity where people, children and the elderly and others, could be offended. That so many here think public nudity is normal, shows just how depraved my beloved old city has become and how selfish are many of the outsiders who have come to live in it and claim it as their own.
Athena wrote:I'm sure no one has missed you! Brighton attracts open-minded and cosmopolitan people and I am confident the ride will go ahead.
Europeans don't cycle naked in the streets, as one of the posters implies. Another says it's a fab place to live and they've been here 30 years. I lived there for 40 years and left because it turned into a politically correct dump full of exhibitionists.
Children are not shocked by nudity - they embrace it if given the chance. Those adults who have lost all innocence and associate the (naked) human body with corruption and sleeze need a shock to get them to re-evaluate what is really indecent.
For the rest, lets celebrate the human body and at the same time promote the environmental cause. After all, all those synthetic clothes produced from oils are only adding to the problem....
hoveboy
says...
3:39pm Thu 27 May 10
1 - Mary Mears and her family have nothing to do with the company "Mears" who look after the housing stock repairs. Really...do some reaserch. You're on the computer - go look it up!
2 - The Argus mentioned plenty of times the fact that Mary Mears is related to Victor & Henry Mears, but short of sharing some DNA, there really isn't much connection between them is there? Do you take responsibility for the actions of every member of your family?
Gaz the great
says...
4:08pm Thu 27 May 10
Dicky71 wrote:Out of all the above comments, yours is possibly the most terrifying, just the thought could clear B&H in seconds!!!!!!
I bet Mary Mears looks great naked on a bike. Tory killjoy.
Morrissey
says...
8:24pm Thu 27 May 10
southwicker wrote:So many discussions on this website lead to someone shouting 'They should all be arrested!' I'm afraid Brighton police have more important things to do like fighting crime, to send two dozen officers to arrest peaceful cyclists. Its about priorities and if there is nothing more important in your life than making knee jerk badly informed rants about groups of people you have never met.. then perhaps you should take a look at your own life, or lack of same.
i think its disgusting i dont want my children to watch it and also i dont go to brighton when its gay pride because the dont need to see a bunch of semi naked men with there **** hanging out, its not nice , and no one cares if people are gay or what ever the naked cyclists are saying its just another excuse for the freaks of brighton to bear all, ...
i think they should be arrested for indecent exposure sicko`s
Athena
says...
10:57am Fri 28 May 10
Looking at the moral state of Britain today, Mary Whitehouse was right.
southwicker
says...
2:49pm Fri 28 May 10
Gubbins
says...
11:22am Sat 29 May 10
This spectacle will not do Brighton any good in the long term and Cllr Mears is right. She does however need better public / press representation if she is to get her message over.
Any bets on how long this posting will last ??
DougM
says...
12:05pm Sat 29 May 10
Athena
says...
2:47pm Sat 29 May 10
DougM wrote:It is not a matter of finding the human body disgusting or embarrassing. It is a matter of common decency, sadly lacking in so much of Britain, and particularly, Brighton, today. It is quite natural to pee, poo, **** and pick one's nose, but common decency and respect for the varying feelings of others encourages us to keep those things private. To think otherwise, is downright selfish.
The people who find the human body disgusting or embarrassing should realise that their repressive behaviour encourages the activity of paedophiles and perverts.
Athena
says...
2:50pm Sat 29 May 10
Athena wrote:The asterisked word was phart. But I meant to add a question? What on earth has nakedness to do with paedophiles and perverts? However, if you want to go down that road, nakedness encourages that. If we were all naked, the pervs would have a field day with all those cute little children running around.
DougM wrote:It is not a matter of finding the human body disgusting or embarrassing. It is a matter of common decency, sadly lacking in so much of Britain, and particularly, Brighton, today. It is quite natural to pee, poo, **** and pick one's nose, but common decency and respect for the varying feelings of others encourages us to keep those things private. To think otherwise, is downright selfish.
The people who find the human body disgusting or embarrassing should realise that their repressive behaviour encourages the activity of paedophiles and perverts.
southwicker
says...
7:36pm Sat 29 May 10
Malcolm Boura
says...
2:50pm Sun 30 May 10
yorkie44 wrote:yorkie44 is clueless about the motivation for nudity. Nudity is fun and the object of any demonstration is to draw attention.
I agree with everything Mary Mears says. This event is supposed to be about oil dependency and car culture. Where does nudity come into this? The naked aspect is entirely to draw attention to the event and to shock. The Chief Inspector is missing the point entirely. We saw on the Brighton Beach TV programme that women were not even allowed to be topless on the beach. We have seen Stephen Gough repeatedly arrested for his nude walks, when it was about the right to be naked and he was avoiding very public places. Why do we allow this revolting behaviour in our city centre?
"I do not like" can never provide justification for restricting other peoples freedom. That is prejudice and what is more, prudery is harmful.
The first time that Stephen Gough walked the length of England there were several arrests and some convictions but all were overturned on appeal. The following year he was arrested a couple of times, presumably by police officers who did not know the law, and released immediately. The law in Scotland is completely different.
Anyone trying to prevent women from being topless on Brighton beaches is almost certainly acting illegally.
May I offer yorkie44 my sincerest sympathy? The body phobia demonstrated by his final comment must be a terrible affliction to live with.
Malcolm Boura
says...
3:02pm Sun 30 May 10
Athena wrote:Children are not embarrassed by nudity unless an adult tells them to be.
We may have all been born naked, but man has been wearing clothing for thousands of years both to keep warm and out of common decency. Wobbling bits and pieces are not a pretty sight and there is rarely anything particularly sexual about group nakedness. IA town's culture and value does lie in its people and their attitude but it is its architecture and history which attracts people to it. Hence Brighton has changed from its elegant Royal and oriental roots into an over-the-top cartoon version of itself. Children laugh out of embarrassment when they see people in the nude, not because it is funny. Older people have seen it all before, and the 60s generation have been there and done that and learned the lessons from the dreadful mistakes we made. This generation's time will come and they will see what they have done and will fear for their own children.
I agree with the last sentence. It is not coincidence that teenagers in the most prudish western countries are several times more likely to have an abortion, about ten times more likely to become pregnant, and several tens of times more likely to catch an STI. The evidence is absolutely crystal clear but there is incredible reluctance by the prejudiced to face up to reality.
Is irrational body prejudice really worth the life of even one young person? Prudery is child abuse with good intentions and ignorance is not an excuse.
Malcolm Boura
says...
3:13pm Sun 30 May 10
Athena wrote:I came across this topic rather late I am afraid.
Gubbins wrote: "As for Cllr Mears, she is morally correct and appears to be trying to do the right thing but so was Mary Whitehouse in her day ! "
Looking at the moral state of Britain today, Mary Whitehouse was right.
Some of what she campaigned for was justified but she was also criminally irresponsible. She quite deliberately mixed up good with bad according to her own prejudices and the results in some areas have been little short of catastrophic. She near single handedly invented the phrase "sex and violence" and she set back the cause of effective sex and relationships education by decades.
Athena
says...
6:16pm Sun 30 May 10
Malcolm Boura wrote:Nudity is natural and not a hobby, so it is not something which is "fun". Being a naturist, however, you, in particular might see it as "fun" to parade your body in front of other people to enhance your own sense of self-worth and your need for exhibitionism, because that's all it is, however you try to justify it.
yorkie44 wrote:yorkie44 is clueless about the motivation for nudity. Nudity is fun and the object of any demonstration is to draw attention.
I agree with everything Mary Mears says. This event is supposed to be about oil dependency and car culture. Where does nudity come into this? The naked aspect is entirely to draw attention to the event and to shock. The Chief Inspector is missing the point entirely. We saw on the Brighton Beach TV programme that women were not even allowed to be topless on the beach. We have seen Stephen Gough repeatedly arrested for his nude walks, when it was about the right to be naked and he was avoiding very public places. Why do we allow this revolting behaviour in our city centre?
"I do not like" can never provide justification for restricting other peoples freedom. That is prejudice and what is more, prudery is harmful.
The first time that Stephen Gough walked the length of England there were several arrests and some convictions but all were overturned on appeal. The following year he was arrested a couple of times, presumably by police officers who did not know the law, and released immediately. The law in Scotland is completely different.
Anyone trying to prevent women from being topless on Brighton beaches is almost certainly acting illegally.
May I offer yorkie44 my sincerest sympathy? The body phobia demonstrated by his final comment must be a terrible affliction to live with.
RJStone
says...
9:48pm Tue 1 Jun 10
hove.gov.uk to express your views as a resident of Brighton & Hove and cc Graham.bartlett@suss
ex.pnn.police.uk
Personally I think the bike ride is a true expression of Brighton's freedom and micro culture. Children brought up here could be exposed to far worse on TV or elsewhere, so that's a poor excuse to support the opposition perspective.
Let's vote as residents and demonstrate whether the council is on this occasion is being reprehensive of its constituents. I'm going to email Mary now, using the paragraph above.
rosiedoes
says...
10:30am Wed 2 Jun 10
Athena wrote:Yes, and most of us love it for exactly that reason.
Coun Mears says: "“At the very least, this event will lower the tone of the city..."
How so? Brighton's tone is already about as low it it gets. Brighton was famous for the "dirty weekend". Now it's just trashville, where exhibitionists indulge their own need to "express themselves" in any way they think fit to shock.
I hate to break it to you, Athena, but your twin-set set are now very much in the minority in Brighton and the rest of us are absolutely delighted about it.
rosiedoes
says...
10:46am Wed 2 Jun 10
southwicker wrote:You are very welcome to remain in Southwick; in fact, those of us in Central Brighton would almost certainly encourage it.
i dont want my children seeing naked people riding bikes through the town , i saw it by accident a couple of years ago and i didnt like it, i didnt choose to see them they went past me, i dont think im being unreasonable. i think that these hairy f wits are just trying to be controversial and if a lady can be arrested in worthing for stripping naked then why is this cycle ride ok .. its because they are being so green and recycle everything. but they are just annoying
I would argue that the naked cyclists, in fact, are not the "fwits" in this equation. I would pin the limited intellect on those who oppose the bike ride with statements such as "its because they are being so green and recycle everything ."
Athena
says...
2:35pm Wed 2 Jun 10
rosiedoes wrote:Twinsets? I haven't worn them since they were considered "cool" in the 70s. Before that it was skirts up to heaven and after that it was topless bathing for me and my age group. Sorry, but been there and smoked that. Seen it all before. And the consequences.
Athena wrote:Yes, and most of us love it for exactly that reason.
Coun Mears says: "“At the very least, this event will lower the tone of the city..."
How so? Brighton's tone is already about as low it it gets. Brighton was famous for the "dirty weekend". Now it's just trashville, where exhibitionists indulge their own need to "express themselves" in any way they think fit to shock.
I hate to break it to you, Athena, but your twin-set set are now very much in the minority in Brighton and the rest of us are absolutely delighted about it.
Will Golden
says...
10:48am Wed 16 Jun 10
So perhaps the debate should not be about the naked bike ride, but instead how we can rid the council of deviants who cannot see a naked body without becoming sexually obsessed. These people lack the education to understand that nudity is only occasionally sexual and certainly never publicly. They are a menace to society, a risk to law and order and unfit for public life.
Athena
says...
11:26am Wed 16 Jun 10
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